Chapter 148 — Interrogation
Purple Streets of Chang'an · Page 1 of 4
Song Yan instinctively turned his head aside, dodging the slap Song Cen aimed at him, and blurted out, "Father, how could it possibly be me?"
Whether it was his son's conduct that had enraged Song Cen so, or the boy's dodging of the blow, Song Cen was beside himself. "Wretched boy, you dare argue with me!" he roared, pointing at the ground before him. "On your knees!"
Song Yan hesitated a moment, then knelt before his father.
"Xingfang admitted with her own mouth that she saw you carrying on with Meirui; Chen Tao confirmed that the jade pendant was yours, and that it went missing when you left for Liaodong. Witness and evidence both—and still you deny it!" Song Cen was shaking with fury. "When you were three, I hired a drillmaster to teach you martial arts; when you were five, I brought in a great scholar from the Hanlin Academy to begin your education... Even for your younger brother, I never expended such effort. How much your mother and I poured into you, and this is how you repay us! Thank heaven your mother is gone—had she lived to see this, she would have died of shame! You unfilial wretch, you have dragged the Yingzhèn Garrison Manor's name through the mud..."
Chen Tao...
How could it be?
Impossible!
Song Yan stared at his father in shock.
Xingfang was another of his mother's senior maids. He had had little contact with his mother's maids, so a false accusation from her was conceivable. But Chen Tao was his milk-brother, the second son of his wet nurse; Chen Tao and his elder brother Chen He had entered the household at five to serve him, and on this journey to Liaodong it had been Chen He who attended him most closely. Anyone might betray him—but Chen Tao, how could he?
He listened quietly to his father's upbraiding, his expression gradually growing complex, and only when his father's anger had run its course did he speak in a low voice. "Father, this truly has nothing to do with me! Think about it—the jade pendant was hardly the equal of the manor's other treasures, but it was an heirloom of the Xuanming Sect all the same. On my hundredth day, Grandfather presented it to me before all our relatives and friends. Even if I were the greatest fool alive, I would never give it to a serving maid! Would that not be declaring openly to the world that she and I were lovers? Besides, I have never been without attendants—whatever I did, one question would reveal it. Even if Chen Tao's memory failed him, there are still Master Yan, and Yu Jian and the others..."
"And you have the gall to bring that up!" Song Cen cut him off with a cold laugh. "Do you know what Xingfang said?" His voice rose sharply. "She said Meirui dared not refuse. Knowing that if it came to light she would have no place to die, and fearing you would disown her afterward, she stole a jade pendant while she was in your bed, meaning all along to plead with your mother for mercy. Who could have known your mother would sicken and die so suddenly? She was four months with child, and I meant to marry her off—she knew the paper could no longer wrap the fire, and in her terror she dashed her head against a pillar..." He slammed his palm on the kang table. "Nothing you say today will make any difference! I mean to teach you a lesson on behalf of your dead mother!" He bellowed for the rough-work women. "Drag the heir out and give him twenty strokes!"
The servants on duty in the upper rooms were all Jiang Shi's people, and at this the women exchanged uneasy glances.
Song Cen seized the cup from his hand and hurled it at them. "Dogs! Am I not to command you now?"
Song Yan had no choice but to say to the women, "My father disciplines me on my mother's behalf. It is only proper." He wore the look of one who would offer no resistance.
Only then did the women shuffle over, murmuring, "Forgive us, Young Master," as they took hold of Song Yan.
Song Cen, watching, flew into a rage. "Beat him here! Beat him here, I say!"
The women looked at Song Yan.